Blood Truth
by carocali
Summary: AU Tag Fresh Blood. Gordon pulled his neck taut, fangs descending for the kill.  With his first taste, he finally had the proof he needed...demon blood ran through Sam Winchester's veins. COMPLETE


So, after I saw _Fresh Blood_, I couldn't help but think it was the perfect opportunity for the boys to learn each other's deep, dark secrets. Alas, the great Kripke (who owns everything – including my hide!) had other plans, so I had to reconfigure his ending in my own warped way.

Basically, this AU tag has Gordon sucking Sam's blood instead of Dean's, discovering that the boy really DOES have demon blood. Hilarity ensues. Okay, not really… it's more of a Sammy angst-fest, with some bi-bro whumpage in there for good measure

It's beta'd (betaed?) by the amazing Geminigrl11, but after I got it back and made all her changes, I realized I needed to play more – including adding a little more blood for her. ALL the remaining mistakes and grammatical errors are mine, and mine alone.

:D

Caroline

-o-o-o-o

"Sam! Stay close!" Dean barked as he caught the young woman before she could fall to the ground, whisking her up into his strong arms like she weighed nothing.

Less than an hour earlier, the Winchesters had received a phone call from Gordon Walker, vampire hunter extraordinaire. His demands were simple: come to the warehouse or the girl dies. End of story.

Gordon's luck had turned to cruel irony as he tracked the brothers throughout the country. He'd stumbled upon a lonely vampire trying to create a family of blood suckers to last for eternity. The vampire recognized Gordon for whom and what he was, and rather than kill him, he gleefully made him into the thing Gordon despised the most.

And, ultimately, it would lead to Gordon's death …but not before he took out the one person in the world who was more dangerous than him.

There was no convincing Gordon that what he was doing was wrong, either with the frightened woman or his misconception of the youngest Winchester. The lunatic-now-turned-vampire wanted Sam Winchester – the _anti-Christ_ – dead, and he would stop at nothing to accomplish his goal.

Gordon was a brilliant hunter -- one of the best -- but now he had even greater advantages over his quarry: impeccable sight, hearing, smell. All the benefits that came with being a vampire. These things would aid him in his quest to kill Sam. It would be Gordon's last good deed on earth before he ended his own life, destroying his last vampire.

Gordon was the top thing on both brothers' minds as they scanned the area for the attack that was sure to come. They weren't stupid enough to think that Gordon would let them get the girl and waltz out of the factory that easily. It was a trap. The only way they were going to get out of this mess was to be smart and alert.

Of course, luck wouldn't hurt either.

Sam held his serrated knife at his side, sticking to Dean like glue, as instructed. They carefully continued through the corridors, weaving in and out, as Sam stole a quick glance back toward where they'd come from. In that split second of hesitation, a large garage door crashed down between them with a resounding thud. Their reaction was too slow and the wall divided the brothers.

"Sam?"

"Dean!"

Dean banged and kicked on the door, desperate to get to his little brother. He hoped to find some weakness in the metal, or some super-human strength of his own to bust the door down, but he knew they'd been duped.

"Damn it, Sam!"

Sam pounded back and threw a boot in for good measure, but also realized it was no use. The door wasn't going to budge. This was it. He knew he was doing this alone, just like Gordon wanted. But at least his brother was safe, along with the girl. That was a comfort of sorts.

"Sam, be careful," the muffled order called from the other side of the wall. Sam sighed, knowing this was just the beginning.

And then the lights went out.

The ping of his weapon echoed through the room as Sam held it at the ready, jutting the blade outward to use on instinct. His other arm stiffened in front, reaching for walls and obstacles that were now blanketed in darkness. Sam slowly made his way around the room, mentally trying to remember the layout for his escape, hoping he could find Dean and get the hell out of there unscathed. He knew Gordon wouldn't stop until he was dead. But Sam wasn't quite ready to meet his maker; not without saving his brother from "the deal" first.

"Gordon? You got me where you want me. Might as well come out and fight." Sam gripped the machete, swishing it from side to side, expecting an attack at any moment. His fingers wrapped tighter and the sweat from his palms layered the handle. Each step took him around in circles as his back became the navigation, brushing against the walls. He tried to calm himself with deeper breaths, concentrating on every noise in the place.

"I'm right here, Sam."

Sam swung the blade with intent where the voice had been, only to find no purchase. The stealth of the vampire hunter was impressive, and Sam knew he was screwed if he didn't find an advantage – fast! A maniacal laugh filled the room as if it were an echo chamber, taunting the youngest Winchester from all angles, making his blood run cold.

Continuing to feel the warm pipes accompanying the contrasting cool metal walls for some indication of where he was, Sam journeyed around the empty warehouse, wondering if Dean would find a way to get to him in time. Hoping his hesitation at the door wouldn't get them both killed.

Wasn't this how it always was? Sam getting in trouble and Dean swooping in to save the day with no regard for his own well-being? Dean's laissez-faire attitude about his impending death was driving Sam insane. And not _just_ since the deal, although it was certainly amplified since then. Sam couldn't get it through Dean's head to stop acting like a vigilante when it came to his own safety. Hadn't they just had that fight? Now, all Sam wanted was to have his wise-cracking brother by his side as they faced their foe. They were a great team and probably stood a chance against Gordon if they were together. By himself, Sam was having some doubts, and a pang of guilt ate through him as he realized he never even had a chance to say goodbye.

As if reading his thoughts, Gordon interrupted, "What's the matter, Sammy?"

A loaded question, indeed.

Sam knew that the hunter observed every step he took, every breath. Gordon's vampire instincts were heightened along with his reflexes, and Sam was trying to calculate how to use that to his advantage. So far, he was coming up short.

By now, Gordon could probably hear Sam's blood pumping through his veins.

His _demon_ blood.

And that's what started this whole thing.

Even if there was a way to get out of the warehouse alive, Gordon had Sam's scent now. He knew the lifestyle of a hunter and had his own network of crazies to help hunt Sam down. It was pure luck – _Dean's_ rabbit's foot luck – that had saved Sam from Gordon's cronies last time.

The brothers knew that this was a fight to the death. There was no way that Gordon could walk away.

Ultimately, Gordon was doing what he thought was right; he saw no shades of gray. As a hunter, it was his duty to eliminate evil at any cost. And once Gordon had learned about the psychic kids created by the yellow-eyed demon - with Sam on the guest list - all of his focus had zeroed in on the youngest Winchester. It didn't matter what he thought of the kid, or who his father was, he'd been named in the coming demon war. And "Sam Winchester must die" had become his mantra.

"You have no idea what I faced to get here. I lost everything. My life," Gordon spat as he sauntered around the room, far out of Sam's reach, but close enough to taunt him with his booming voice. "But it's worth it, cause I'm finally gonna kill the most dangerous thing I ever hunted."

The words resounded in Sam's head as his heart sank. He'd questioned himself so many times since he'd watched his girlfriend burn over their bed. Their search for the _thing_ that killed their mother and Jessica was thankfully over, but too many questions remained unanswered. Was Sam destined to become evil? Between the revelation of his six-month birthday present of demon blood and his mother's recognition of the yellow-eyed demon, Sam didn't know what to think anymore.

After opening the gates of Hell, more pieces to the puzzle revealed a larger scale plan with Sam seemingly at the forefront. They'd met _the_ Seven Deadly Sins in Nebraska, and "Pride" had hinted that Sam's future was in jeopardy now that the yellow-eyed demon wasn't there to protect him. He'd called Sam a "prodigy," "the boy king;" neither of which settled well with Sam.

What the hell was that even supposed to mean?

Ruby, the mysterious hunter-demon, knew all about Sam, too – the now sole survivor of the Demon's psychic kids. She'd also said that YED had big plans for him. Why did everyone know these plans _except_ for him?

Ruby, along with several other demons, was working from a different agenda now that Azazel was gone; one that included _helping_ Sam from time to time. Sam had told Dean about Ruby and what she'd done for him; saving his ass and giving him information. He'd also mentioned her offer to help Sam try and break the deal, but Dean hadn't been interested. Just the opposite, in fact: the oldest Winchester ripped into him, knowing that demons lie, and that if they screwed with the deal that Sam would drop dead. Dean all but forbade Sam to see her again, like an angry parent.

Which made Sam glad he hadn't told Dean _everything. _

Some of the damaging truths Sam had learned about his past were things he'd kept hidden, hoping to never confess what truly ran through his veins. It would kill Dean to know that he'd sold his soul for his brother, only to discover the cancer that lived inside. And after their father's dying charge to Dean to kill Sam if he couldn't save him, there was no way Sam could come clean about everything with the short amount of time they had left. Wouldn't the demon blood thing bring Dean just a little closer to making that impossible choice, adding layers of guilt that years of therapy couldn't patch?

"You're not human, Sam."

A quick shiver confirmed that Gordon's words had met their mark. Was he human? What did the demon blood actually do to him? Was he finally free from his tortured fate now that the yellow-eyed demon was gone? He had hoped that it would all be a bad dream, until demons and spirits came out of the woodwork to verify the tale.

"Look who's talking."

Gordon's goading continued – jab after jab. Sam tried to talk him out of his plan, hoping that he could still reach the _human_ part of Gordon. To make him understand that they still had a way out of this.

"I know what it's like. We're the same now, you and me," Gordon concluded, inching his way ever closer to Sam, smelling the fear radiating off him and absorbing the sweetness. It intoxicated him, knowing he was so close to ending it all. "I know how it is, walking around with something _evil_ inside you."

Sam's heart quickened as the panic began to overtake him. There would be no convincing Gordon that he wouldn't turn evil, because in his eyes, Sam _was_ the anti-Christ. There was no hope for his soul, and there was no way that Gordon was going to leave this earth without taking Sam with him.

The attack was so swift that Sam never saw it coming. They crashed through the wall with such force it knocked the wind from Sam's chest. Stunned, he opened his eyes to find Gordon draped on top of him. Sam felt the vampire quickly whisk the machete away from his grip, eliminating the threat of decapitation. With inhuman strength, the older man picked him up like a rag doll and tossed him into a work bench several yards away, leaving Sam gasping at the continued abuse.

Dean materialized behind the vampire, cocking the Colt, after hearing the initial crash through the wall. He was just a second too late. The gun was batted from Dean's grasp like a toy as Gordon twisted and punched him in the back of the head, catching the right nerves to create a dizzying field of play for the young hunter. But Dean was relentless when it came to protecting his brother. He found the inner strength to continue the fight, attempting to return a blow, but missed the vampire as his head continued to spin. Still held in Gordon's grasp, with his arm pinned behind his back, Dean struggled to flip him over his shoulder, only to find the man immovable.

Gordon was not amused by the turn of events and came back to kick Dean in the stomach, pushing the air from his lungs. The hunter inside of him wanted to end this quickly and get back to Sam. He had no real quarrel with the eldest Winchester, but knew that Dean would get in the way of his final duty. With one more vicious smack to the boy's head for good measure, Gordon easily tossed Dean, catching his shoulder on one of the small broken pipes protruding along the walls.

Dean grunted in pain, steeling himself against the onslaught of fire leaching through his collarbone. His vision darkened at the new injury; the tip of the rod lodging itself into his shoulder like a coat hook. Dean felt the sharp ductwork scrape against bone as his jacket slowly absorbed the blood leaking from his body. Not to mention that there were three Sammies swimming in his vision.

"Sam!"

Sam shook himself from his own stupor to see Gordon advancing on him. He watched in terror as the vampire glanced back briefly at the lure of the elixir dripping from his brother. Sam saw Gordon's internal struggle with his vampiric self, wanting to quench his blood thirst on Sam's flailing sibling. His heart began to panic and adrenaline rushed through Sam's veins as hungry eyes looked at Dean. Sam resisted his own pain and noisily pulled himself up from the workbench, dropping items to the floor, praying that Gordon's trajectory would focus back to him and lead the vampire away from Dean.

Gordon made his choice in an instant, rushing to Sam's struggling form, knocking him violently to the table again. He was here to do a job – his _last_ job – and that need was the only thing that mattered. With brutal force, he slammed Sam's skull onto the workbench, creating a flowering lesion that drizzled down his face. Gordon scanned the boy, seeing the glazed-over look caused by the head wound, making him more pliable for the kill.

His insides rumbled with anticipation.

Like it or not, Gordon was now a vampire, and the smell from Dean's bloody beating had ignited the craving within. And with the gift of Sam in his arms, _tempting_ him with the rivulets streaking down his face, it was getting more difficult to concentrate on the final task at hand.

Dean was calling out, trying to break through the muffled fog of Sam's concussed state; but it didn't matter to Gordon. The blood dripped from the boy's forehead like forbidden fruit, and he watched with excitement as Sam's frightened eyes grew to saucers.

Gordon grabbed the mop of chestnut hair backwards, exposing the soft skin of his neck. He laughed at the unfocused swipes from Sam as saliva moistened his lifeless mouth, bringing forth fangs that descended upon the fraught hunter. Sam continued his attempts at freedom as Gordon sucked his blood like an ice cream soda in the summer. The letting was swift and Gordon felt Sam losing his battle with consciousness.

"No!!" Dean struggled against the pipe, seeing the light leaving his brother's eyes. He cleared his head and began the extrication of his body from the conduit, knowing time was growing short. "Sammy!"

Gordon pulled back from the youngest Winchester with renewed verve after taking his extra-long drink, blood dripping from his satiated lips. The vampire dragged his palm across his face, staining his dark skin with the crimson. He held a flaccid Sam in his massive arms, inches from his face, triumph in his voice. "Can't lie to me now, boy. I can _taste_ it on my tongue, _feel_ it in my veins, you know. The demon blood." Horror washed over Sam's already ashen face as Gordon smiled, knowing that Sam could no longer deny who he was. _What_ he was.

The vampire turned to regard Dean, who was slowly inching his way towards the pair, leaving a trail of blood in his wake. A small wash of pity crossed Gordon's face as he looked at the determined man crawling closer to them. "It's true, Dean. You're brother's a monster. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, you'll be sorry alright," threatened Dean as he stumbled closer, his vision still unsettled. He refused to let Gordon shake him, but the look on Sam's face told another story. "You let my brother go now, and as much as I _want_ to tear you up, I promise to make your death quick."

Gordon continued, dismissing Dean's veiled threats as empty. "Don't you see? He's _not_ your brother. He's _evil_. Put on this earth to destroy it. Masked with a pretty face and sympathetic eyes." Gordon looked at Sam with hatred in his blood-shot irises. The boy was weak but still battled in his unyielding grip with waning strength. "I'm no expert, Dean, but Sam's blood doesn't taste like the others I've had. It's…like a drug. That's _demon_ blood rushing through his veins. No question."

Sam gasped and stiffened, seeing that Dean was trying to process what Gordon was saying. Conflicting emotions filtered through his features and the expression on Dean's face settled on pained; and not just from his injuries.

Dean knew.

Gordon Walker was confirming Dean's fears about his little brother and bringing to life Sam's worst nightmare.

"No..." Dean shook his head.

Gordon turned back to Sam, shaking him, understanding for the first time how much Dean trusted and loved his brother. How this was really tearing him apart. "You lied to him, didn't you? Led the man around by the nose all these years, pretending to give a damn about him? Never telling him what you really are? What's flowing in those veins of yours?" He grabbed Sam harder and pulled him closer. "Lied to your own flesh and blood. Oh wait, that's right. _He's_ not your brother; all those demons, _they're_ your family."

"No," Sam struggled, pawing at Gordon's steely grip. "Not true."

"Oh, Sammy, it _is_ true. Even now, the power is intoxicating." Gordon pushed closer to Sam, breathing his stale, dead breath on his skin. He looked the boy up and down, eyes finally resting on the open, throbbing wound on Sam's neck. The temptation was too much as the sanguine's siren song called to him. Gordon licked again at the pulsing vein, closing his eyes in satisfaction as it crawling down this throat. "I want you to look at your brother's face before you die, so you know the pain you've caused him. How can you even deny it?"

"No! Dean, please..."

Sam's face was desperate. His whole world was crashing in around him. Heading down the slippery slope of deceit and failure and pulling his brother along for the ride. Dean didn't deserve this, and he certainly didn't need to hear it from a vampire. Panic became anger and hatred for Gordon. He could literally feel his blood boiling, knowing it would be over soon; that he would die with Dean hating him for what he was. For lying about everything. Sam cast a stare of pure malice towards Gordon and noticed the change in the man's features right away.

The vampire actually paled.

Gordon furrowed his brow, wondering what was going on, knowing something was definitely wrong. He let out a small cough and loosened his grip on Sam.

The young hunter took a breath and let a kick out, colliding at just the right spot on Gordon's knee, causing a jolt of pain that made him release his grip. Freed, Sam fell slightly into the workbench, nearly overcome by nausea and blood loss, barely stopping himself from tumbling to the ground. Sam's hands frantically groped the table for any type of weapon, finding a spool of thick wire lying on the side.

Sam pushed Gordon further away, finding an inner strength he didn't know he had. Determination to fix the damage that the vampire had created. He reached for the wire and twisted it haphazardly around Gordon's neck. The vampire was still struggling too much with whatever Sam's blood had done to him to really fight the unexpected onslaught from the boy. Sam looped the wire and pulled in opposite directions with what was left of his strength, watching as Gordon's eyes started to bug out.

Seeing his brother weakening, Dean approached from Sam's left and grabbed the other end of the wire, adding his own muscle to the effort. Gordon continued to gasp for air, clawing at the sharp metal surrounding his neck, not really sure what was happening. Veins were punctured and blood spewed from all angles as the wire cut deeper and deeper into Gordon's skin, causing gullies of crimson to flow from the gashes. Sinews snapped as the cuts went deeper. Slowly, messily, his resistance faded as the wire cut through the final layers of epidermis to the spinal cord and his head fell to the ground with a thud, rolling to the right of Sam. Gordon's torso fell full-on into Sam, knocking him in a final effort to the bench.

Dean let go of the wire that dug into his hands, looking at the head of their enemy; Gordon's lips making a final gasp as they gently opened in death.

"Well, that's just gross."

The spurting blood finally ceased as Gordon's headless corpse leaked onto Sam, drenching him in the filth of his sin. He clumsily attempted to push the carcass away as his tattered mind tried to grasp what had just happened. It seemed that vampire blood and demon blood did not make a good party mix, and Sam had open wounds. He didn't want to have a reenactment of the internal chaos Gordon just underwent with the same deadly cocktail.

At least he _thought_ that was what happened…

"Did he bleed on you, Sammy?"

Sam's heart roared at the music to his ears; the simple nickname giving him the strength to shake his head no.

Dean grabbed Gordon and pushed his body to the ground, where it fell on top of his lacerated skull. He noted Sam's pale skin, as he leaned heavily on the workbench.

"We have to get out of here. Now," Dean barked, turning his attention fully to his brother. "We'll come back and salt and burn him and the girl later."

Sam took an unsteady step forward and almost did a face plant as his senses seemed to desert him. Dean caught him with a gasp as his own injury reminded him of its presence.

"Dean, let me look at you," Sam insisted with renewed energy after hearing the grunt, trying to lift the back of his brother's crimson-stained jacket to get a look at the injury. "God."

"No. Not now. Gordon's blood is all over you. I can't take the risk." He found a few clean rags and shoved them under his jacket to quell the bleeding, looking to Sam for approval.

Sam nodded emptily as they wandered back through the warehouse, understanding Dean's concern about the vampire blood, but feeling the sting of the rejection none-the-less. Sam grappled with his light-headedness, but refused to give in until he knew his brother was safe.

They came upon several first aid supplies and a sink with running hot water for the factory workers near their kitchen area. Dean scouted it out and found a laundry bag a few rooms down. Sam stripped out of his blood-soaked clothing, while replacing his shirt with a uniform. His new name was 'Oscar.'

Sam took extra care to wash all the blood from his hands and chest before quickly patching his own forehead and neck. Once he knew he was no threat to Dean, Sam commenced the ministrations to his brother's upper back, pulling the stained rags away. They didn't have a lot of time, so Sam cleaned and dressed the shoulder wound, knowing that stitches would have to wait until they were back in the safety of their squatters' home. He insisted that Dean, too, take a uniform and get rid of his soiled clothing. He was secretly hoping to find 'Felix' for a much-needed laugh, but unfairly found a shirt in Dean's size with the name 'John.' The name sent a sting through Sam's heart, catching him breathless.

The ailing brothers grabbed the laundry bag and all traces of their chop-shop medical practice and tore out the door. The attack was taking its toll on the youngest Winchester and the world continued to spin around him. Sam knew it wouldn't be long before he dropped, but he couldn't add the extra strain on Dean's back again. Sam took a steadying breath and followed Dean to the parking lot.

The Impala was where they'd parked it and Dean threw the bag in the trunk for future inspection. He gingerly got into the driver's seat, careful to avoid his shoulder and waited for Sam to mirror him. The passenger door closed and Dean sped off, lost in his own thoughts.

Gordon was a good hunter, a little crazy, but he had great instincts. Dean had never believed his crazy talk about his brother being evil, and after all Gordon had put the two of them through, he wasn't sorry to see him go down. Dean knew Sam, better than anyone, and there was nothing evil about his brother.

But it didn't stop the niggling in his brain that there was some truth to what Gordon had said. Didn't stop the fact that his father had told Dean he'd have to kill Sam if he couldn't save him.

What if there _was_ something in Sam's blood? Why had he been immune to that demonic virus back in River Grove?

There were also secrets that Dean kept from Sam since Cold Oak; things he didn't want or need his brother to know. After his tete-a-tete with Casey, the demon from Ohio, Dean was a little more than shocked to hear of the yellow-eyed demon's plans for his baby brother. How Sam had been chosen from the beginning to be his protégé, like some preppy kid being groomed for an Ivy League school. The idea of Sam leading an army from Hell was just too much for Dean to take. Sam was one of the kindest people he knew, filled with moral standards and righteousness. Dean refused to believe that Sam would turn darkside.

What about what the yellow-eyed demon had said before he died back in Wyoming: "How certain are you that what you brought back is one hundred percent, pure Sammy?"

No, he wouldn't believe it.

But Sam was acting differently in so many ways. He was quicker to judge since his death. More aggressive. The life of the innocent didn't weigh as heavily on his mind as it once did. The job was the job, end of story. And that was unlike the Sammy Dean knew. The Sammy he sold his _soul_ for.

What if he'd made a terrible mistake? What if The Demon was right? Now, with Gordon's additional accusations buzzing through his head and the "miracle cure" from the virus back in Oregon, Dean just wasn't sure.

It would certainly be like Gordon to try and goad Dean into killing his brother by lying about the taste and feel of the blood, but Dean had seen the change himself. It wasn't just luck that loosened Gordon's grip on Sam. Something had happened, something _inside_ of Gordon. What Dean wasn't sure about was whether it was Sam's blood or Sam himself that had done it.

Either way, he couldn't take it anymore! The time had come to put all the cards on the table and see what the hell was going on with his little brother.

Dean looked over to Sam, who was leaning heavily against the window. He looked pale, drawn. Troubled. It didn't pass his notice when Gordon spat out that Sam had demon blood running through his veins, how frightened Sam had been – like the kid whose hand was found in the cookie jar. He'd begged Dean not to listen to Gordon. Sam wasn't afraid for his life; he was afraid that Dean had discovered his secret.

_Oh God, it's true. _

Dean pulled in front of the complex they were squatting in and put the car in park. He grabbed the handle and the door squeaked open with its patented tune. He expected Sam to rouse at the familiar sound, but he laid there, head against the window, unmoving.

"Come on, Sammy, let's get you checked out. The Doctor is In." The door slammed and he popped the trunk to grab the bloody clothing, hoping to salvage at least some of it. Dean tested his shoulder and found it stiffening up, but not as sore as he would have expected. He fished around for the med kit and a few more weapons, in case Gordon's other crazy friend showed up. He still had a score to settle with Kubrick for tying his brother up in that motel room and beating the living tar out of him. Dean closed the trunk forcefully with his uninjured arm and his stomach lurched to his throat.

Sam hadn't moved an inch, his head still plastered in the exact same spot.

Dean quickly rushed to the passenger side door and knocked on the window, hoping to startle Sam awake, but to no avail. He slowly opened the door and Sam's large frame spilled out, Dean barely catching him. He cried in pain at the pressure of his two-ton brother pushing against him. The unexpected yowl seemed to snap Sam alive as concern for Dean superseded his own internal struggles.

Owlish eyes looked at his brother as Sam observed the pained expression on Dean's face. "Dean, you okay?" Sam's shaky hand reached to Dean's visage with delicate care, gently stroking the stubbled skin that had seen better days.

Dean had to literally turn the other cheek to stop himself from losing control of his emotions; the tenderness of Sam's touch eating away at his insides. The internal conflict between what his head and heart were telling him was just too much. He steeled his composure and pulled his brother up. "Let's get you inside."

Sam followed, completely unaware of what was going on. His head was clouded with jumbled thoughts – none of which made any sense. All he knew was that Dean had asked him to do something in 'that voice' and Sam had no recourse but to obey. They walked together towards the door and Sam was deposited on the nearest mattress, feeling himself drifting back to sleep with the comfort of Dean nearby.

"No, no, Sam. You have to stay awake. Just a little longer, alright?" Dean looked at his lethargic brother, knowing there were several injuries inflicted upon him by Gordon. He'd hoped they were all superficial and wouldn't warrant a visit to the ER; that was something they couldn't afford right now.

Dean pushed Sam's chin up, deciding to start with the bite on his neck. Sam had thrown a bandaid over the wound at the factory, barely taking the time to clean it in their haste to exit the crime scene. Dean pulled the dressing off, noting the redness around the edges of the injury. He dabbed some alcohol on the wound, eliciting a sharp hiss from Sam. Dean followed it up with holy water, which bubbled away the last remnants of the vampire blood. The hunter couldn't help but be reminded of the time his brother was possessed and how that same reaction had occurred as he'd splashed the blessed liquid on his restrained sibling.

A shiver ran down his spine, hoping to never have that experience again.

By now, Sam was more aware of his surroundings and feeling more in the game. He was still drained and tired, but he knew before he fell into a fitful sleep, he had to take care of Dean's wound and try to repair the emotional damage done by Gordon.

"I'm sorry."

The apology came from nowhere and startled Dean, who immediately changed his ministrations from Sam's neck to his forehead, slapping his palm there, checking for fever. He knew Sam was out of it, but he had no idea where this line of commentary was going.

"For what?" Dean inquired cautiously.

"Everything," Sam replied, tears streaming down his face. The time had come to tell Dean all he knew, from the revelations of the yellow-eyed demon, to the taunts of Ruby about their mother. A huge sigh escaped his lips as he continued. "I…I have some things to tell you. And it won't be easy."

Dean nodded, knowing that this was it. All chips on the table. The graveyard confession, the "getting to know you session" with Casey. It was the only way to save his brother.

"Yeah, Sammy. I guess we need to talk."


End file.
